A Year to Remember
by ProffesorZoom
Summary: Shikamaru is in Konoha's most popular boy band. Temari is a decently popular girl who obviously falls in love with Shikamaru.I suck at writing summaries, gimme a break. Final Chapter Out!
1. The Leaf Boys

**ok, well this is my first try at a shikamari fic, so be patient, please**.

Shikamaru and Temari barely knew each other at the start of their sophomore year at Konoha-Suna High. well, that is not to say they didn't know _of _each other, they were in a few of the same classes and things like that, but they didn't know each other personally. This was all about to change.

Temari was somewhat of a member of what some people might call The "Popular" Group, however still retained a bit of dignity and was not a ditz (two things Shika was thankful for later on).

Shikamaru had usually been a relatively quiet student, who got average grades and was the self proclaimed "Lazy Champion of the Universe". He always seemed to blend in crowds, and nobody really took much notice of him. Of course, this was before he became keyboardist (and backup vocals. don't forget that) in Konoha's new, and extremly popular "boy band" :The Leaf Boys. (yup, you guessed it. Carl Wilson, Al Jardine, Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson and Mike Love, I am very, very sorry.)

Surprisingly enough, the band had started out playing copius amounts of The Beatles and R.E.M. (yep, my favorite bands all right) Of course, that all changed when Naruto found out that Shikamaru had been right all along, and that it was possible to write his own songs. That was when the band stopped playing in small cafes around Konoha, and started to have bigger concerts devoted completely to them. (well, U2 played at some of these concerts, but sadly, nobody cared)

So, after that brief introduction, our story begins at the front door of Konoha-Suna High School. (god, I sounds like a freakin "Masterpiece Theater" narrator, except wittier, and more smexy)

Anyways, our story begins with Shikamaru, walking into the school, and grumbling about how troublesome it was to have to go back to school, and have all these girls gaping at him and how smexy they thought he was. He looked at his class schedule, and saw he had AP English first, with Kakashi. From what he had heard from his friends about AP English, Kakashi mainly made them read M-rated novels. Not that anyone in the class complained, of course. The claees started at 8:45 sharp, apparently. With a groan (and, as he groaned, all the girls around him sighed dreamily) he looked at his watch. 8:43, it blinked at him.

"Shit," he said to himself, "Class is all the way on the other side of the building. Guess I'll have to run for it."

As he started to run, the girls around him (who had previously been muttering something in a large group, all the while sneaking furtive glances at him) squealed "He's running away! Go after him!"

Shikamaru looked around in surprise to see a mob of teenage girls chasing after him. "Crazy women," he muttered under his breath. " Why couldn't they have gone for Naruto or Sasuke instead? They're the "pretty" ones. But nooooo. Damn fangirls."

Little did he know that those girls had been the first to school that morning, just waiting for a "Leaf Boy" (I crack up every time I type that) to come into school so that they could mob him, and that his watch was, in fact, running fast that morning, and was really only 8:00. Naruto and Sasuke wouldn't be arriving for another half an hour.

After 10 minutes of running as fast as he could, he arrived at the AP English classroom. Chest heaving, he slammed the door behind him in the nick of time, and locked it. He turned around to see an empty classroom. He looked at the clock on the wall. It read 8:10. He swore loudly, and a gasp was heard from outside the room. He then walked over to the windows on one side of the classroom, opened one, and went through to the outside of the school.

After setting his watch to the correct time, he decided to sit and wait for class to start. At 8:45, he climbed into the classroom, heard bangings on the door, and muffled shouts from outside the room.

"Shit." He went over, and unlocked the door. A stream of students cam inside, all looking for the guy who had locked the door. The found nobody, as Shikamaru had hid behind the door, then mingled with the crowd as they searched for him. Of course, Kakashi was 15 minutes late. 15 loooonnng minutes, thought Shikamaru, as he had spent all of them sitting in a chair at the back of the classroom, with fangirls drooling at him and guys glaring.

It was then that he decided he wanted to quit the band.


	2. Quittin' Time

**ok, well here's the second chapter.**

Temari walked into school at 8:30. she always got there a bit early to talk with her friends before class. The bell rang at 8:45, signaling the start of the first class. She looked at her schedule: AP English, it read (well duuuh). She hurried to class, wondering how the hell she had gotten into that class in the first place. She stepped into the classroom at 8:55, to find that the teacher, Kakashi, was not there. Seeing as how she had no real friends there, plopped into a seat at the back next to a sullen-looking boy, who she recognized as-

"Hey! You're Shikamaru, from the Leaf Boys!"

"Yup. Although, I'm not sure about that anymore."

"Wha-"

"I'm quitting. I hate the music we play anyways, and having to spend all of my frre time being chased by girls and glared at by guys doesn't help."

"Why? You're really good at playing the keyboard, and you have a really nice voice-" she blushed, thinking that he probably gets that a lot, and that it doesn't hel-

"Yeah. I get that a lot, and I'm sorry, but it doesn't help."

"No, really, I actually mean it! My favorite of the songs you were solo on was "Nightswimming", back when-"

"We still played in coffee houses and stuff. Well, it's nice to know that you appreciated the-"

"Music from _before_, right. I do like some of your newer stuff, though, but I'm always a sucker for R.E.M." She smirked at being the one to interrupt _him_ this time, but...Why am I telling this guy all this? she thought to herself. I've only ever seen him on stage or passing by in the hall. This is so not like me...

His voice broke into her thoughts, "Hey, you look kind of familiar..What's your name?"

"Temari, why?"

"I dunno, it's just kinda nice to meet someone who liked the band before we became "popular", I guess-"

He was cut off as Kakashi walked into the room. "All right, class, sorry I'm late. I had a friend over last night, and...well, let's just say I slept in a little late."

The whole class obviously knew what he meant, as they all exchanged glances.

"Anyways, I am about to present you all with your reading material for this year. You will be tested on it at midterm. The book is "Make-Out Paradise", a favorite of mine, written by the esteemed author, Jiraya-sama."

After class, Temari and Shikamaru went to their seperate classes, but not before exchanging emails.

Why did I even do that? thought Temari to herself, as she walked away. This is so unlike me.

Why am I doing this? thought Shikamaru to himself, as he walked away. This moring I was scared out of my wits by girls, and now I'm giving one I don't know my email?! This is so unlike me.

Temari's next class was Math, with Iruka. As she walked in, she saw her best friend, Hinata, sitting on the left side of the classroom and in the back. She motioned for Temari to sit next to her. "Hey Tema, what's up?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing much, I just met Shikamaru, ex-member of the Leaf Boys, and he gave me his email address."(I'm bragging about it?! I must be insane. she thought)

"Holy Cow! That's----wait. _EX_-member?"

"Yup, He said he was tired of the music they were doing, and having girls chasing after him, and guys glaring, stuff like that. I think he might've been a bit sad, though, to be breaking away from friends of his." Now she was thinking about his innermost feelings?! This had to stop.

"Wow," said Hinata. "Oh my cow! I can't believe I forgot to tell you! Kiba asked me out!!!"

"Kiba?! Isn't he in the Leaf Boys as well?"

"Yeah, he's the drummer. He's so...dreamy..."

"Umm, sure. whatever you say, Hina."

**Meanwhile...**

Shikamaru sat staring out the window in AP Math, led by Asuma. He was thinking of Temari. She had seemed really nice, he thought to himself. Not like all those other crazy chicks who chase after me. I don't know what they'd actually do to me if they caught me, and I _**don't**_ want to find out.

But he couldn't stop thinking about that girl.

Later at lunch, he met up with the other members of the Leaf Boys: Neji, Naruto, Kiba and Sasuke. They motioned him over to the table where they sat. Chouji, Shikamaru's best friend since first grade, was also with them, wolfing down a hamburger. Kiba had also been a longtime friend of Shikamaru, and he hoped Kiba wouldn't take it too hard when he quit. Was he having second thoughts now?

"Hey Shika-dawg! what up, homie-G?" said Naruto.

Nope. No seconds thoughts at all.

"Guys..I'm quitting." It sounded almost wrong, but he fully meant it.

They all looked up at him in surprise, Neji starting to "put his angry face on", Sasuke glaring, Naruto's soda coming out his nose, and Kiba...Kiba with utter disappointmnet on his face.

Chouji finished his hamburger, and said, "C'mon, guys, you shoulda known this was coming. How many times has he told you he hates the music and the attention? Huh? Don't get pissed off at something that was coming for a long time that you had enough warning to stop."

"Go away now. Both of you." sid Neji.

Shikamaru looked at Kiba, whose dissappoinment was quickly turning to rage. "Kiba...I'm sorry."

But Kiba wasn't listening. He glared at Shikamaru. By then the whole cafeteria was watching the scene. Kiba slowly stood up. He looked at Shikamaru with a look of pure hatred, and said, "Real nice, Shikamaru. Was it fun betraying your friends?!"

Shikamaru slowly turned around, and began to walk away, tears starting to form in his eyes.

"I HATE YOU!" Kiba roared from behind him. Shikamaru, now crying for real, ran out of the room.

From across the room, Temari took advantage of her friends' momentary distraction to slip out another door.

For reasons unknown to her, she suddenly wanted to comfort Shikamaru.


	3. Groundhog Day

**ok, folks, here's the third chappie.** **thanks for any reviews that may have been left. also, please feel free to submit ideas at any time(especially because as I begin this chapter I have no idea what's going to happen) so, thanks for reading, and I'll "tuna out" until I make some comment about me being smexy.**

To put it rather blandly, Shikamaru ran. He had no idea where he was going, but away from school seemed rather promising. He was sobbing. Losing a good friend like Kiba didn't come easily, it wasn't something he could shake off. He had left Chouji behind in the cafeteria, who was probably now shouting at the "Leaf Boys" (hehe. I'm smexy). Chouji had always been a good friend, and so had Kiba...at least, until today.

"Worst..damn...first day of school...ever..." was pretty much the one thought running through his head as he ran. He eventually came upon his preferred "cloud-watching" spot(he has to be a bit in character, he can't always be as smexy as me and harrison ford) and lay down. The tears had mostly left his eyes, but he felt almost as if a chunk of him had been torn away. And it only happened with three words: "Guys...I'm quitting."

**Meanwhile...**

Temari raced through the school trying to find Shikamaru. After about 20 minutes she gave up. "What is going on with me today?" she asked herself. "I just met this guy, and now I want to comfort him after he recieves a big emotional blow?(for lack of a better phrase XD) I mean, he is kinda cute, but that's not really it..." she spent the rest of the day pondering this.

By the time school let out, she had come up with two half-plausible reasons:

1: She kinda liked him, and wanted to be a friend of his.

2: He seemed really depressed, and maybe it was just her, extremely sweet, caring nature, wanting to save another selfless human from-

She mentally scratched the second one off of the list. She was nice, but not exactly a clone of mother teresa. She took out a pice of paper from her pocket, meaning to start a list, when she noticed something was scrawled on the paper: (LOL. I love how things like this just come to me out of a clear sky). She raced home, thinking of what she would write to him in her head.

When she got home, her older (yes, I know, non-canonical, but you realized that already) brothers were zoned out on the couch eating potato chips and watching a baseball game on the television. She went into her room, and logged onto her hotmail account. She sent Shikamaru the email, and hoped he was online to get it. He was. A few minutes later, she got an invite to gmail from "la-z-boy", and so quickly filled out the account thingy and logged in. She then emailed him again, him emailing her back, telling her to download googletalk so they could chat. She did, and a few mintues later they began talking.

**la-z-boy:** **so why did you even bother worrying about me?**

**san-d-girl** (sorry): **I'm not quite sure myself, but...I dunno.**

**la-z-boy: que?**

**san-d-girl: well, I dunno, I kinda liked you. not in a boyfriend kinda way, but you're a nice guy.**

**la-z-boy: well, thank you, I guess. and it was nice of you to check on me, seeing as how we only met today.**

**san-d-girl: laughs yeah, well, friends stick together, right?**

Shikamaru paused. "Friends"? "Hmm..." he thought. "Are we really-"

**san-d-girl: yes, silly, we are really friends.**

**la-z-boy: heh. well, if you say so...**

**san-d-girl: and I do...**

**la-z-boy: ...then I suppose we're friends. cya school tomorrow.**

**san-d-girl: ok, bye.**

They both signed off, and plopped down on their bed at the same time, slightly puzzled, but feeling a small buzz of happiness that they couldn't explain.

**The following day...**

Chouji met up with Shikamaru at the school doors.

"Hey, man, are you feeling all right? You were really depressed yesterday."

"Yeah, I'm okay. I kinda made a new friend, as well."

"Oh really? Who?"

"You know who that Temari girl is, right?"

"Oh, yeah, sure, she's in my chem lab. Wait, is she your girl-"

Temari came up behind them, and threw her arms around both of their shoulders. "Nope, just a friend."

Chouji and Shika both reddenned a little at this, but quickly regained their composure when Temari let go.(he-he-he)

"So, Shika-kun, off to AP English then?"

Shikamaru reddenned again, and nodded. "This woman is troublesome," he thought (caaatchphrase!!) "but, despite all of that, I kinda feel something..."

A few weeks later, Shikamaru, Temari and Chouji were solid friends. They went to movies and stuff often, and this was one such night. The movie was being shown at a nearby warehouse, where some guys had gotten a projector, a large bedsheet, and a collection of Bill Murray films (Woot Groundhog Day!!!) At the time they were there, the movie being shown was Groundhog Day(LOL). Chouji was sick that day, and was rather pissed his mom wouldn't let him go. However, Shikamaru and Temari went(no sheet, Sherlock). They sat on a couple of lawn chairs Shika had taken from his garage, and they had brought some popcorn and candy.

"Too bad that Chouji couldn't come, he loves these Swedish Fish" Shikamaru said, as he bit the heads off of several of them.

"Yeah," said Temari "I bet he would've liked this movie, too."

**now the cliche part!!**

Shikamaru had finally decided to pull "The Move". (LOL) He yawned, stretched out his arms, and casually threw his left arm around Temari's shoulder(OH YEAH!). She was a little surprised at first, but decided she didn't mind. After all, she kinda had a small crush on him, he was cute, and pretty sweet, so why not?

They sat like that so the rest of the movie, laughing at parts like when Ned Ryerson comes up to Bill Murray exclaiming "Phil Conners?!", and Bill promptly punching him in the face; when Bill/Phil kidnap Phunxtawny(eh?) Phil (the groundhog) and drives over a cliff. and then comes back, because his day keeps repeating. Finally, on the one night where he makes sure everybody in the town has a great day, and falls asleep with Rita, then wakes up in the morning on February 3rd, the two of them kissed.(awwww...) It lasted about half a minute, then they broke apart.

Shikamaru looked at her and grinned. "We should do this more often." he said.

Temari, however, wasn't so sure. "Sure, she thought, he's sweet and all, but...he's a friend. Not really a boyfriend..."

Her indecision, however, was soon to be erased at the upcoming Christmas dance, which Shikamaru asked her to the next day.


	4. The Night Before the Day Before

**ok, well, here's chapter 4. thanks for reading. btw, this chapter is more T than the others, I suppose, as in violence.**

'Twas the night before the day before Christmas, and Shikamaru arrived at the Christmas dance before Temari, and at first was rather annoyed he'd even considered going, as loud "hip-hop" was blaring from a large set of speakers in one corner of the room. Just great. Although, he did know that he couldn't hide from this crappy music forever(you tell em!), and so sat down on a chair on the side of the room, waiting for Temari. It was a semi-formal dance, and as he looked around he could easily tell he was the only one who didn't give a shit. Sports jackets on guys and girls in dresses, and there he sat, in black pants, a white long-sleeved shirt with a black t-shirt over that. He had brought something with him, which was sitting in a black case in the corner of the room. He had asked the DJ to make sure nobody did anything to it, as it was part of his surprise for Temari.

About 10 minutes after Shikamaru arrived, Temari walked up to the ticket counter. Kakashi was sitting there, reading what appeared to be the latest book in the "Make-Out" series. He put it down as she approached.

"Ah, Temari, there you are. Shikamaru bought an extra ticket and told me to give it to you when you arrived."

She was pleasantly surprised by this, and walked into the room. She immediately noticed Shikamaru sitting on the side of the room with a bored look on his face. As she walked over to him, he looked up and noticed her. His eyes kinda bulged out and his jaw dropped. She grinned, and sat down next to him.

"Wow, Temari, you look...great."(seems kind of a botched line to me, but hey.) She was wearing a dark red dress which I can't really describe, other than that it was a nice dress and was dark red, as I barely know the first thing about dresses. Suffice it to say that it was a nice dress, as Shikamaru thought she was extremely beautiful, possibly even more then usual.(ehe)

"Why thank you, Shika."(now it's getting easier to write. phew!)"So, do you want to dance?"

"I'm not really much of a dancer."

"Aw, come on."

"Meh...ok."

They danced for a while, and it was the popular opinion of most people that Temari was way better than Shikamaru, although Shika could dance a mean "Robot"(LOL). After an hour or so(probably so, an hour seems a long time to keep moving), they stopped nad went to get some food. At the snack table-thingy, they met Chouji, who was there with Ino. They chatted for a bit, until the "Leaf Boys" (LOL) came over with their dates, **ominous music **Naruto with Sakura, Neji with Tenten, Sasuke with some random girl nobody had ever seen before and who will have no bearing on the story whatsoever, and Kiba with Hinata.

Shikamaru was glared at by the four members of said boy band which I cannot type the name of without cracking up(Leaf Boys, hehe). Temari looked anxiously at Shikamaru, who was returning the glares tenfold.

"You'll see me in a minute," he said to Temari, "I have to...get something."

"Okay." Temari took this time to talk with her friends, who didn't apparently realize how evil those damn "Leaf Boys" were, and were too caught up by their "dreaminess"(sorry to any fans of those characters, I wanted an excuse to call the "Leaf Boys" evil). At the moment, those evil bastards were casting glances at Shikamaru an seemed to be coming up with some kind of plan.

**Meanwhile...**

Shikamaru went over and whispered something to the DJ, who gave him the black case. Shikamaru unzipped it, and took out his keyboard, which he proceeded to set up, checking the whole time to see if he was being watched by Temari, which he was not.

When he had the keyboard all set, he took the DJ's microphone and said, "Can I have your attention, please?" The room quieted down a notch, and the music was turned off by the DJ.

"Thank you. Hi, I'm Shikamaru, former member of the Leaf Boys, and I'm going to play something on my keyboard here.(nice, Shika. real smooth) The song I'm about to play I am dedicating to the woman I love: Temari."(corny!)

Temari's friends around her gasped, she nealy spit out the soda in her mouth. She still wasn't certain she liked him like that, however it was obvious he did. She felt trapped, as now she might break his heart if she refused him(ZOMG!).

And then he started to play the opening of R.E.M.'s "Nightswimming"(kudos to anyone who figured it out). She gasped, wondering how he had known her favorite song. And then it came to her; their first conversation:

**Flashback!!!!!** (yay, I've always wanted to do that)

_"Hey! You're Shikamaru, from the Leaf Boys!"_

_"Yup. Although, I'm not sure about that anymore."_

_"Wha-"_

_"I'm quitting. I hate the music we play anyways, and having to spend all of my frre time being chased by girls and glared at by guys doesn't help."_

_"Why? You're really good at playing the keyboard, and you have a really nice voice-" she blushed, thinking that he probably gets that a lot, and that it doesn't hel-_

_"Yeah. I get that a lot, and I'm sorry, but it doesn't help."_

_"No, really, I actually mean it! My favorite of the songs you were solo on was "Nightswimming", back when-"_

_"We still played in coffee houses and stuff. Well, it's nice to know that you appreciated the-"_

_"Music from before, right. I do like some of your newer stuff, though, but I'm always a sucker for R.E.M." _

**End Flashback**

(here's the kinda sappy part)

She loved his voice, the ways his fingers danced across the keys(where the hell did I get that one?!); she loved _him_.

He then got to her favorite part of the song:

_Nightswimming,_

_Remembering that night._

_September's coming soon._

_I'm pining for the moon._

_And what if there were two_

_Side by side in orbit_

_Around the fairest sun?_

It melted her heart, and she knew for sure now that she was deeply in love with him. He finished the song, and there was a small bit of applause, but mainly people wanted the "other" music back on.

Temari ran through the crowd of people, running as fast as she could to get to Shikamaru quickly, because she wanted to show him that she deeply loved him. When she reached him, there were tears of happines in her eyes, and she kissed him. It took him about a minute to realize what was happening, but when he did, he returned the kiss as passionately as he could, holding her tightly to himself.

They were standing right in front of one of the speakers as it started to blare some rap song or other. But they didn't care. They went on kissing, as if nothing in the world could pull them apart, not even a construction worker with a crowbar, a day off work and a mission statement(I dunno where that came from). When they finally broke apart, they were both filled with an immense feeling of happiness.

**Later...**

Shikamaru had walked Temari home after the dance, unaware that they were being followed. They parted with a kiss and an "I love you" at her door. Shikamaru walked away, heading for his house. He was whistling a merry tune(XD) and had a feeling that nothing in the world could go wrong. He was, of course, about to be proved wrong. Very, very, wrong.

He was taking a shortcut through an alleyway, leading him to the playground that was close to his house. As he was in the middle of the alley, two people appeared at the end of the alley he had just come from, and two in front of him. He recognized the silhouettes, Neji, Kiba, Naruto and Sasuke. And they were closing in. He tried making a break for it past Kiba and Neji, but to no avail. Neji clotheslined him and he fell in a puddle, hitting his head hard on the ground.

"Oh, well, look who's here, boys," Kiba said to the rest of them. "It's Bambi! Aw, does wittle Bambi have a girlfriend now? Is Bambi thinking he's all hot stuff cause of that?! Well, lemme tell you something, guys, I'm hungry for some venison." They all got the basic notion of what Kiba was saying.

Naruto grabbed him by the front of his shirt, and hauled Shika up from the ground. Shikamaru lunged immediately for the gap between Neji and freedom, but Sasuke and Naruto grabbed both of his arms and held him back. KIba laughed, and punched Shikamaru in the gut. Hard. Neji kneed him in the ball, Kiba punched him in the face, repeatedly until Shikamaru was gasping for air, his nose almost definitely broken and his face bloodied. They all laughed, and Kiba dismissed Naruto, Sasuke and Neji, who walked away laughing their heads off.

"Well, what does Bambi have to say now?" Kiba jeered. Rage was welling up inside of Shikamaru. "Come on, Bambi, come at me with all you've got!" He looked at Shika, and said, "Know what, Bambi? Your girlfriend is a fucking, dirty, slut!"

That was enough for Shikamaru. He roared and lunged at KIba, ignoring the pain coursing through his body, he grabbed Kiba by the neck, and slammed him up against the wall. Kiba and he were alone now, there were no "Leaf Boys" backing Kiba up. Kiba was sufficiently out of breath now, and struggles to be released from Shika's stranglehold. He kneed Shika in the balls. Shikamaru momentarily let go, but that was enough for KIba to break away.

Shikamaru quickly caught up with the escaping Kiba, however, and tackled him to the ground. He pinned Kiba down, with a strength fuled solely by rage(wow this is intense!). He grabbed Kiba's head and repeatedly slammed it against the ground. Kiba was bleeding now, and Shikamaru kicked him one last time, in the face.

"That, Kiba, is what you get for insulting my girfriend."

Kiba got up, knowing they were both weakened from the fight, slowly got up and made as if to run away, then turned around and decked Shikamaru in the face.

Shikamaru's vision blurred, then everything went black.

**wow, that scene kinda surprised me, I'm very sad I even let it happen. **

**oh, and when I mentioned Temari's heart melting, was that really a good thing? it kinda sounds bad.(XD I know what it means, I just kinda wanted to lighten the mood. okay, well, thanks for reading.**

**tuna out.**


	5. Redone without crappy makeout scenes!

**ok, here's chapter 5. thanks for reading and reviewing! D **

'Twas now the day before Christmas. Shikamaru had woken up in the hospital earlier that day, to his parents and Temari looking at him anxiously. Apparently Gaara and Kankurou had noticed the "Leaf Boys"(LOLZ) following him, and decided to check it out. They drove him to the hospital, along with Temari, who was crying. His parents were called, and he expected a full lecture, which he hadn't gotten. His nose was almost broken, but not quite, several of his limbs were bruised, and he had a black eye. He was just happy he had gotten as little injury as he had. Although his groin still hurt and he ached all over. The doctors said he would recover fully in a few days, but told him to get some rest.

So now he was lying on his couch with his head in Temari's lap. She was running her fingers absentmindedly through his hair as they watched "Back to the Future"(awesome movie, Micheal J. Fox rules). Since  
Shika had the whole trilogy, they were watching them all in order, as Temari had never seen any of them(well, almost all of them. as the 3rd sucked, they were going to watch "American Graffiti instead. awesome movie). They were at the part were Marty had first gone back in time to the 1950's.

Shikamaru looked up at Temari, and stroked her face. She smiled at him. He slowly lifted himself up, and they kissed for several minutes, before he had to lower himself again due to exhaustion.

"Oh, so I'm too boring for you, Shika?"

He spluttered, "N-no, not at all, I-"

She laughed. "I'm just kidding, Shika, there's no need to worry." She pulled on his cheek.(endearing character traits. gotta love em)

"Oh. I, uh, knew that. Yeah."

She laughed again, and their attention returned to the movie.

**Later...**

After the movies were all over, it was about 1:26 in the morning(and 34 seconds, but I bet you didn't care). It was technically now Christmas. Shikamaru felt bad, because he hadn't gotten Temari a present.

"Temari...I'm really sorry, but I didn't get you a present."

"Well, there's still a chance to give me a present I will treasure forever." she said, winking at him(no, she does not mean sex).

Shikamaru grinned at her, and turned off the light.

**Back in school again...**

Over the vacation, they had met often to watch movies, and make out. But now that was in the past. Shikamaru was back at school, with the same nice lads who had beat him up about a week and a half before. His injuries had all healed, but he didn't want to get in any more fights. He knew Kiba had fabricated an entire story of how Shikamaru had attacked _them_, and it was being spread throughout the school. Most people gave him an extremely wide berth, which he didn't mind all that much.

One day at lunch, Temari, Chouji, Ino and Shikamaru were sitting at a table when some of Temari's friends came up(the girlfriends of the "Leaf Boys", which I named last chapter.) to them, obviously wanting to talk to Temari. However, when they saw Shikamaru, they froze. After dragging Temari away, they proceeded to give her a lecture about how she was hanging out with a "very very bad person who almost killed our boyfriends", yada yada yada.

Temari tried to explain to them that it was Shikamaru who was the one who had been maliciously beaten.

They didn't listen.

She explained again.

Again, they paid no attention to what she had said.

She was then so pissed off that she found it hard to continue the discussion without using the phrase "You ignorant toads."

They were then all so appalled at what she had just called them that they decided never to speak to her again.

Temari came back to the table where Shika, Ino and Chouji were sitting, and said, "Oh well. I tried."

**later...**

It was two days before Valentines Day, and Shikamaru wanted to give Temari something very special(for all of you wanting me to write about sex, no. sorry) but he couldn't quite figure out what to get her.

**Two days later...**

"Hey Shika!"

It was Saturday, Valentines Day, and Shikamaru had asked Temari out to dinner and promised a movie afterwards. At the time, Shikamaru was sitting at a table in "Radio Free Europe", a rather nice restaurant owned by avid R.E.M. fans (the name, of course, was kind of ironic, as the place always had a radio playing, and was not in europe. At the time it was playing all love songs, the one playing as Temari walked in was "I Got You Babe", by Sonny and Cher)

Shikamaru gasped. Temari looked...amazing. She was wearing a different dress than she had at the christmas dance, and(if possible) aroused Shika even more than that one.

He stood up, pulled out her chair for her, and said in a rather lousy british accent: "Well, there you are, marm. I hope you find the accomodations suitable."

Despite his awful impression, Temari giggled and sat down.

**phew. i got rid of the awful bits and now i can write again. PROFESSOR ZOOM LIVES!!!**

**tuna out.**


	6. The Thrilling Conclusion!

**hey, I'm back again, after a while of not doing anything! I've been busy with school and stuff. I'm not quite sure what I'll do with this chapter, but writing as I go along has worked for me so far. this chappie may lean more towards the "M" rated side, because of violence and attempted rape. notice I say attempted, as I wouldn't do that to a character in my fic. writing this has been really fun, so I'm trying to make this, the last chapter, enjoyable and laughable for you all, while still containing some serious undertones. thank you, everyone, and enjoy chapter six.**

After their Valentines Day date (or singles' awareness day for those of us-like me- who have no boy/girlfriend), Shikamaru walked home with Temari. When they got to her house, they stopped on her front porch(I am sooo sorry about all the cheesy cliches I use, it's really sad).

"Thanks for a great night, Shika."

Shikamaru smiled at her. "No, thank you."

"No...you."

"You."

"God dammit, Shika, we sound like small children due to the author's apparent inability to write sufficient dialogue."

Shikamaru nodded. "I know exactly what you mean." He pulled her into an embrace, and they made out on the porch swing until Temari's dad came out and yelled at them. He grinned as he waved at Temari, and started to walk back to his house, which was all the way across the city. He started humming "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", not because he was depressed, but it kind of seemed like it fit the mood: him walking home, alone, at night, in the dark, with only streetlights lighting his way(ZOMG watch out for Jack Nicholson dude! XP).

As he turned a corner two blocks from his house, he was met with a familiar sight: the Leaf Boys, minus one(if you must know, it was naruto). He sighed as he asked himself when they would stop bothering him. As they barred his path along the sidewalk, he decided to run across the street to the other side, and continue running all the way home, as he didn't want to get into another fight. He began running, but was not chased.

"Strange," he thought, "Why aren't they following me?"

His question was soon answered with the roar of a large truck-heading straight for him! He managed to get a glimpse of the driver-a shock of messy blonde hair-before he dived out of the way, narrowly avoiding being run over. He hit the asphalt hard, then got up and ran away faster than he had ever run in his life. There was no question in his mind now: the Leaf Boys were out to kill him.

**- - -**

"Fuck," said Kiba, "I knew Naruto would screw up. Looks like we have to resort to 'Plan B', boys."

"...There's a plan b?!" Neji exclaimed.

"News to me," said Sasuke, "I thought we were just going to run over him and claim it was an accident."

"Look, just shut the fuck up. There's a plan b now, anyways. I'll take care of this one, I won't need you guys." Kiba replied.

"Okay".

**- - -**

**At the end of the year, in June...(yeah, it took Kiba a long time to plan out "Plan B")**

It was the last day of school. Those students that we going away for the summer were saying their goodbyes to their friends, the Leaf Boys were giving a concert, and there was a generally cheery atmosphere. Shikamaru and Temari went to the concert because the other band playing was the Dropkick Murphys, who seemed annoyed that a band of 16-year olds were getting more cheers than them(the luck of the Irish wasn't strong that day).

"I'll go get us some soda." said Shikamaru.

"Sure, make mine a Dr. Pepsi." (no, not a typo. it's a tribute to a friend of mine)

Shikamaru walked off while Temari sat down against a tree in the park. The concert had gone late into the night, so it was dark, and not many people were around(ZOMG beware of Jack Nicholson!...ok, I _really_need to stop that...or at least watched "Alice in Wonderland" instead of "The Shining" last night). Suddenly, she heard footsteps pounding toward her. Reaching into her bag for bear mace(hehehehe), she sprung up and sprayed it in her assailant's(neji's eyes). He fell over, clawing at his face(I say clawing at his face because I'm not quite sure what one's reaction is when they get a face full of bear mace. I imagine it might vary from person to person).

Too late, she noticed more footsteps coming from behind her. She didn't have enough time to retaliate with the bear mace, as a cloth dampened with chloroform covered her nose and mouth, and she fell unconscious.

Shikamaru came back to where he had left Temari, and instantly noticed something was wrong, due to the fact that Neji was rolling aroung on the ground with bear mace on his face, and Temari's bag was lying abandoned on the ground. He quickly whipped out his cell phone and called Chouji.

"Chouji. It's Shikamaru."

"Oh shit, dude! I just saw Kiba running toward the abandoned warehouse on East 12th Street!" said Chouji(another cliche, along with a Green Day reference...I am sad).

"K, thanks." He hung up, and started running. He didn't know what Kiba would do to her, but he assumed the worst.

**- - -**

Kiba chuckled as he bound Temari's limbs with rope. She struggled to break free, but the knots were tight.

"And, now, princess," said Kiba, "Let the fun begin."

**- - -**

**10 minutes earlier...**

As Shikamaru ran through the streets, all he could think of was how much he hated Kiba. He passed East 18th Street. He was getting close. At this point, the author decided that Shikamaru should be wearing a black trenchcoat, because he imagines that Shika would look seriously badass with a black trenchcoat flapping out behind him as he ran. So, suddenly, Shikamaru had a black trenchcoat on.

"The fuck?" he thought to himself. "Oh well. I don't see any reason to argue this, as I look extremely badass."

He finally spotted the abandoned warehouse, and hoped he wasn't too late. He ran up to the door, and, discovering that it was locked, swore loudly and attempted to break the door down.

BANG!

BANG!

CRASH!!!

He rushed in, to discover Kiba standing over Temari, gloating and on the verge of removing his shirt. Kiba noticed him and swore loudly. Shikamaru threw aside his trenchcoat and charged Kiba, filled with rage. He knew he had saved Temari, but he still wanted to make Kiba pay.

Kiba got into a ready position as Shikamaru charged at him(now, if this were a perfect world, Shikamaru would take out a lightsaber and slice Kiba's head off, but sadly, that won't happen. sorry). Shikamaru reached him, and threw a punch at Kiba's stomach, but Kiba dodged it and kicked Shikamaru's feet out from under him. Shika landed hard on the concrete, and quickly rolled to the side as Kiba attempted to step on his face.

He got up, and charged again at Kiba. This time, Kiba was still recovering from his last attack, and, surprised by the speed of Shikamaru, was caught off-guard. Shikamaru punched him hard in the jaw, and Kiba went down like an elbowed soccer player. Kiba got back to his feet, and, grabbing Shikamaru's shoulder, shoved him up against the wall. He began punching Shikamaru with one hand, while pinning his neck to the wall with his other arm.

Shika wasn't pinned for long, as both of his arms were free. He kneed Kiba in the groin, and forced him away. Kiba doubled over, but got back up quickly when he heard the sound of sirens, about 4 blocks away. He punched Shika in the face, and then made a mad dash for the door. Shikamaru recovered, but Kiba was almost at the door. He swore, and began chase. Just as Kiba reached the door, it was thrown open with such force that it hit Kiba full in the face and he was knocked to the ground.

Shikamaru recognized the silhouette standing in the doorway, and grinned. Chouji had saved the day(Woot!). He instantly remembered that Chouji's dad was the police Chief, and realized Chouji must have told him about Kiba.

Several police officers grabbed Kiba, who was now unconscious, and hauled him into a police car and drove away. Shikamaru ran over to Temari, and quickly undid her bonds. She collapsed onto him, sobbing. He held her tight and cried as well.

"It's going to be okay, Tema. It's going to be okay." he said, stroking her hair. They sat there for an hour, holding each other until each of them stopped crying. They then fell back on the floor, lying next to each other.

Shikamaru turned to Temari. "Hey, you ok?"

She smiled, and nodded. "I think so."

"In that case, race you to the ice cream shop? Or would you rather I carry you?"

She punched him playfully. "You have no chance of winning, moron."

They raced off to get ice cream, laughing all the way.

**whew! that's it! thanks everyone for reading. I hope you enjoyed this last chapter. I have another fic planned, I may try my hand at writing a tragedy. that's all.**

**thanks, and TUNA OUT!**


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